GM
Gregory Kaidanov rarely plays the Sicilian. GM Judit Polgar rarely plays
in the United States. Top-level chess is rarely played amidst the marshlands
and golf courses of Hilton Head, South Carolina. Despite the abnormalities
of the setting and protagonists, the two will duel from February 22-25
in a Sicilian Theme Match. The
rules of the match dictate four different Sicilian variations to be
played over the four-game match. Under classical time controls, the
grandmasters will employ the Sveshnikov, Dragon, Najdorf, and Scheveningen,
in that order. Each game will begin at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time with a
possible blitz tiebreaker to follow.

According
to Kaidanov, he has never played Polgar. He will be outrated by nearly
100 points and is over the age of 50, but even the younger Polgar will
be off her peak rating by several years. Still, she remains the number-one
woman in the world by a healthy margin.

In
some respects, the match resembles the 1973 "Battle of the Sexes"
tennis match between the aging Bobby Riggs and younger Billie Jean King,
albeit with much less machismo. However close the parallel, Kaidanov
said he relishes the role of underdog (a position Riggs would have vehemently
denied).

The
pre-match coin flip landed Kaidanov with White in games one and three.
He will have the White pieces versus the Sveshnikov and Najdorf and
Black using the Dragon and Scheveningen. "I'm happy with anything
because I don't get to play many Sicilians for any side," Kaidanov
said.

A
check of databases shows that Kaidanov has been involved in fewer than
50 Sicilians in serious competition, and all but a handful have been
from the White side. Curiously, in the mid-1990s he trotted it out as
a weapon against a trio of promising juniors - Boris Kreiman, Josh
Waitzkin and Tal Shaked.

Polgar,
meanwhile, has clashed in more than 500 Sicilians in her career. Unlike
Kaidanov, it is a staple in her Black repertoire.

Kaidanov
said that the Sicilian has been a mainstay at the upper echelons of
chess circles for so long because it "leads to rich positions with
lots of ideas." Kaidanov, now primarily a chess trainer and coach
for various U.S. Women's Teams, has previously stated that he thinks
it is important for chess teachers to remain active in competition to
remain attuned to the game's practical considerations.

According
to the match web site, the winner of each game "earns at least $1000."
Kaidanov, busying himself with match preparation, admitted to not knowing
the specific amounts at stake.

The
match, sponsored by chess benefactor Jeff Smith, will be hosted in a
private setting, with only close friends allowed inside. Chess fans will be able to follow the games
live on www.monroi.com.

Check
back to CLO for a wrapup article, also by FM Mike Klein, following the
conclusion of the match.